Now city chiefs are hoping 'P.S. I Love You' will be the slogan to help Portsmouth succeed in a joint bid with Southampton to become the UK's first City of Culture.

The original theme for the bid was 'Marriage of Maritime' - but that has been ditched in favour of Paul McCartney's lyrics.

Paul McCartney penned the for P.S. I Love You, which was the B-side of The Beatles' first single, Love Me Do, in 1964.

Now, with the P representing Portsmouth and the S standing for Southampton, the slogan will feature on promotional posters and logos.

Even though the lyrics came from McCartney, Culture officials say the inspiration for the words came from the passion and pride of the people of Portsmouth and Southampton, and not from The Beatles.

The two cities hope it will help bag South Hampshire the prestigious title of the country's cultural capital for 2013.

Cllr Lee Hunt, Lib Dem in charge of culture and leisure, said: 'The theme has evolved - the sea is a big part of the two cities but there is so much going on.

'It's about loving history, loving heritage, loving culture, loving museums.

'Southampton has the Spitfire, Eastleigh has the railway history - we want this bid to be the best of all of it.'

As reported in The News, the Department of Culture, Media and Sport announced it was running a UK City of Culture competition for the first time earlier this year. If South Hampshire's bid wins, the area could host a string of high-profile events, including the Turner Prize, Brit Awards and Sports Personality of the Year.

Stephen Baily, head of culture at the city council, added: 'It is really about taking the essence of what it is people love about the city and what they love about the region.

'People here have a great deal of civic pride and it is about teasing that out.'

The first stage of the bid has to be submitted by December 11, the shortlisted cities will be announced early next year and the winner will be revealed in the summer.

Around 30 cities are thought to be applying, although Portsmouth's chances have improved after south coast rival Brighton dropped out of the competition.


THE FAB TWO

'P.S. I Love You' was mainly written by Paul McCartney and released by The Beatles in October 1962 as the B-Side of their Love Me Do single. It was also included on their 1963 album Please Please Me.

The song takes the form of a letter being written by the singer to his sweetheart.

The phrase was later used as the title for a 2004 novel by Cecelia Ahern - a tragic love story. That was made into a 2007 film starring Hilary Swank.